President Smith retiring in January 2012
By Courtney Nickle
Rocket Assistant News Editor

Slippery Rock University
President Robert Smith
announced his plans to
retire in January 2012 at
the Academic Assembly
Tuesday afternoon.
Smith said he wanted to
make the announcement
now to allow time to form
a search committee for
the next president of SRU.
The committee should be
appointed by the end of
this semester.
“In order for them to
begin work and have the
summer, they need to be
formed now,” he said.
There are several things
Smith said he wants to
accomplish before his
retirement, the first of
which is to stabilize the
budget crisis.
Smith also said he wants
to assist in reaching a
contract agreement with
the collective bargaining
groups for the next four
years.
“I want to help prepare
the university to be an
attractive place for the very
best qualified candidates
for this presidency,” he
said.

Smith said he probably
would have retired sooner,
but he wanted to get
through the Middle States
Evaluations and handle the
budget crisis and contract
negotiations coming up.
“I want to make sure I’m
here to deal with those
issues and not hand them
over to someone who
doesn’t know the people
involved,” he said.
One thing Smith would
love to see before he leaves
is the opening of the new
student union, currently
scheduled for Januar y
2012.
“I battled for six years
on behalf of the students
to get the union so it’d be
nice to finally see it done,”
he said.
Smith said many people
have aske d if t here’s
a s e r i ou s u n d e r ly i ng
health issue that led to
the announcement of his
retirement.
“I have no serious health
problems,” he said. “Part of
doing this is so that I won’t
have health problems. One
of the challenges of this
job is going seven days a
week, 52 weeks a year. I
rarely take vacation time
and after a while you just

wear out.”
Smith was named
interim president in 2002
and president in 2004.
The hardest part of
retiring, according to
Smith, will be leaving the
students.
“Serving as your president
has been an extraordinary
personal privilege and the
most rewarding experience
of my life,” Smith said
through tears.
Smith has a current
annual salary of about
$218,000.
Before the Academic
Assembly
began
Tuesday, the members of
APSCUF (Association of
Pennsylvania State College
and University Faculties)
stood and showed their
unity against the proposed
budget cuts.
Jace Condravy, president
of the SRU chapter of
APSCUF, walked near the
front of the room and blew
a whistle. Every APSCUF
member in the room blew
their own whistles with
her, and then froze for
two minutes in whatever
position they happened to
be in.

NATHANAEL HOOKS/THE ROCKET

Slippery Rock University President Robert Smith announces his retirement at the Academic Assembly in
Swope Music Hall Tuesday afternoon.

Nine Green Fund grants approved
By Eric Busch

Rocket Staff Reporter

SRU President Robert Smith
approved
nine grants March
SEE APSCUF, PAGE A-2
29 worth $34,622 to finance
selected Green Fund projects.
The most expensive of the
nine approved grants was for
updating and improving the
electrical monitoring system in
four buildings on campus.
This grant was applied for
by Scott Albert, director of
facilities and planning, and will
cost $20,690.

Budget approved for art gallery

According to Albert, Old
Main, Carruth Rizza and
Patterson Halls and the Art
Building are the four locations
that will be improved with this
money.
He said meters in these
buildings would be integrated
into the building automation
system that tracks electrical
consumption on campus.
Another grant Albert
applied for, in conjunction with
Greg Sferra, director of campus
recreation, and Chris Cole,
University Union director, will

be used to add two water bottle
filling stations on campus.
This $4,000 grant was
originally going to pay for
one of these stations in the
Aebersold Recreation Center
and another in the union,
Albert said.
“The committee didn’t feel
that the money should be spent
when the Student Union is
going to be vacated next year,”
Albert said in an e-mail.
He said the second station

Gallery this week when the
Co-Operative Activities
B o ard i n for m e d t h e
department that its budget
was under review.

Co-Op voted Thursday to
continue funding, but those
closest to the gallery believe
there’s a need for more space.
Laura Dicey, a senior art
education major, said the
gallery, currently located in
102 Maltby Center, is used
for senior presentations,
among other things.
“We use it for gallery
openings, visiting artists, art
sales, juried shows,” she said.
“And to get a bachelor of fine
arts certification, you have
to exhibit a show.”
Nina Persi, a postbaccalaureate art education
student, said there are 21
seniors presenting their
shows this semester.
Scot Calvert, a senior art
and creative writing major,
said there isn’t enough space
in the Martha Gault for all of
the shows.
“We had to set up shows
at the Butler Arts Center,
where I do my internship,
because there wasn’t enough
room here,” he said.
Sean MacMillan, an
assistant professor of art
and director of Martha
Gault, said SRU is currently
accredited by NASAD
(National Association of

The Art Department faced
the threat of losing funding
for the Martha Gault Art

A group of about 20 faculty and students from the Art Department attend the SGA Co-Operative Activities
Board meeting to advocate for funding for the Martha Gault Gallery.

By Courtney Nickle
Rocket Assistant News Editor

The SGA Co-Operative
Activities Board voted to
approve the 2011-12 budget
request for the Martha Gault
Art Gallery at its meeting
Thursday.
About 20 faculty and
students came to show their
support for the gallery.
The budget request asked
for $3,595 for the operation
of the gallery.
SGA Vice President of
Finance Adam Kennerdell
said the board was concerned
about the amount of student
involvement with the gallery.
“During the budgeting
process, we didn’t see any
students involved in it and
we couldn’t figure out to
what extent the students
were involved,” he said.
O r i g i n a l l y,
Sean
MacMillan, an assistant
professor of art, was listed
both as the director and the

president of the gallery.
MacMillan said in an
interview earlier in the week
that it’s difficult to determine
the right level of student
involvement with the gallery
because students won’t have
the networks necessary
to bring a wide variety of
professional artists.
“It’s a weird situation
because there needs to be
student involvement, but
it’s a tough call where the
student involvement should
go,” he said.
A f t e r S G A v oi c e d
their concerns to the art
department, they created a
student board for the Martha
Gault Gallery.
Laura Dicey, a senior art
education major, is listed as
the president.
Dicey came to the meeting
prepared with a petition to
keep the gallery. The petition
had over 600 signatures.
“We started this petition
last week and asked students,

faculty and the community
for signatures,” she said.
Dr. Andrew Colvin,
assistant professor of
philosophy and APSCUF
representative at Co-Op, said
he’s seen several instances of
money not going to support
the arts.
“I think we need to be
more supportive of the
arts on campus,” he said.
“Clearly the gallery is central
to the students and the art
department.”
T h e C o - O p b o a rd
also voted to extend the
vending contract with AVI
FoodSystems, Inc.
The contract includes a
25 cents increase for coffee
drinks, a 15 cents increase
for candy and crackers and
a 10 cents increase for soft
drinks, water and pastries.
Co-Op also voted to
approve $1,000 for a juried
exhibition at the Martha
Gault gallery next semester.
SEE LACROSSE, PAGE A-3

JASON ELLWANGER/THE ROCKET

Laura Dicey, senior art education major and student president of the
Martha Gault Art Gallery, speaks on behalf of funding for the gallery.

Pi Kappa Alpha is sponsoring a golf outing on April 30 at Oakview
Golf Club. Registration opens at 11:30 a.m. with a shotgun start at
1 p.m. The event fee is $75, which includes 18 holes with a cart
and dinner. Registration forms can be found in the CSIL Office or
at srupikes.webs.com and are due by April 15. Anyone with questions can contact Corey Stebbins at 814-823-9726 or cds9013@
sru.edu.

University Union Room Reservations

The University Union will begin processing requests for recurring meetings for fall 2011 on April 1. Organizations may request
meeting rooms on a weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or similar recurring pattern. Union Reservation Request Forms may be obtained
at the Union Information Desk or online under Student Life. If you
have any questions, please contact Chris Cole at 724-738-2718.

FAFSA Filing Help Session

Remember to file your 2011-12 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) before May 1st! Students who need some assistance can attend a FAFSA Filing Help Session on Friday, April
8 between 10:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. in Room 213 of Bailey Library.
SRU Financial Aid Office staff will be available to answer questions and provide assistance.

Earth Day Symposium

SRU will host an Earth Day Symposium in the University Union on
April 22 from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. The main focus of the speakers
and presentations will be about the Marcellus Shale gas industry.
The event is free and open to anyone

Forecast from National Weather Service
Saturday
Friday
Sunday
Partly
cloudy

High: 51; Low: 40

Chance
of
rain

would be placed in an academic
building, though he doesn’t
know which one at this time.
The goal of installing these
new stations is to reduce
the amount of plastic and
aluminum waste created at the
ARC from bottles and cans.
A $5,214 grant proposed
by SGA President Jeremiah
Rosser was also accepted to aid
in his “greener campus” project.
Rosser said money from this
grant will go towards buying
trees which will be planted on
recent campus construction

Chance
of
showers

High: 62; Low: 40 High: 75; Low: 58

sites.
He said the original plan
was to partner with the Green
and White Society’s campus
clean up, but the grant wasn’t
approved in time.
Rosser said he met with John
Cowan, assistant director of
campus services to determine
what types of trees should be
planted and where they should
go.
Rosser, who is graduating this
spring, said the project would
have to be carried through
by Jordan Bailley, who was
recently elected SGA president
for the 2011-12 academic year.

Rocket wins seven awards
By Rocket Staff
The Rocket won seven
awards from the Society
of Collegiate Journalists
which was announced
Tuesday.
The paper was awarded
a second place for Overall
Excellence for a weekly or
less publication. Former
editor in chief Josh Rizzo
and former news editor
Jessica Moore won first
place for a news series
and former photography
editor Chelsey Rovesti was
awarded first place for
editorial cartoons.
The Rocket re ceive d
second place for editorials,
which were staff editorials
written by current editor in
chief Kacie Peterson.
Current assistant news
editor Courtney Nickle was
awarded second place in
the breaking and hard news
category.
Current assistant focus
editor Andy Treese was
awarded an honorable
mention in the features
category and the “Spring
Sp or ts Pre v ie w 2010”
photo page also received
an honorable mention.

APSCUF faculty and staff show their unity at the Academic Assembly
Tuesday by freezing in place for two minutes.

Continued from Page a-1

JASON ELLWANGER/THE ROCKET

From top: Kacie Peterson,
Courtney Nickle and Andy
Treese.

At the end of the two
minutes,
Condravy
blew her whistle again,
signaling the end of the
demonstration and again
every APSUF member blew
their whistles in unison.
“We saw it as a fun
way to show solidarity
among union members,”
Condravy said. “We were
more likely to get more
faculty members at this
event and we were able to
do it without disrupting
anyone.”
C o n d r av y s a i d t h e
original plan was to do a
flash mob dance.

“That idea had more
appeal but we didn’t think
we could pull the faculty
together in time,” she said.
“Maybe we couldn’t pull
together a dance, but we
could freeze.”
According to Condravy,
planning
for
the
demonstration st ar ted
about a month ago.
At t h e Ac a d e m i c
Assembly, President Smith
and Provost Bill Williams
recognized 52 faculty
members that reached
significant milestones in
their SRU careers ranging
from 10 to 40 years.

The show will be free
and open to anyone and
will exhibit contemporary
works on a national and
international level.
Scot Calvert, a senior art
and creative writing major,
said the show will expose
students and the community
to current international art.
Co-Op also approved up to
$3,500 for the men’s lacrosse
team’s transportation to
national championships in
Richmond, Va., April 29 to
May 1.
Bradford Allen, the
lacrosse team president, said
the team is currently ranked
number one in the nation.

The team was also
approved for $630 to cover
the referee costs from two
lacrosse games that the team
didn’t budget for.
The Co-Op board also
approve d $ 2 , 600 for
transportation for the
Marching Pride.
The organization recently
received more members,
so the money will go to
transporting it to each
football game.
The Percussion Club
requested $1,200 for African
drums and $500 for a
percussionist to give a master
class.
Co-Op approved both of
the requests.

Campus
April 7 – Alcohol and
nois e violations were
reported in Building B. No
alcohol was found. The CA
is handling the incident.
April 7 – Sara McDonald,
19, and Christina
Wojnarwsky, 19, were cited
for underage consumption
of alcohol after an alcohol
violation was reported in
Building B.
April 8 – Jordan Crespi,
18, and Raquel Redman,
19, were cited for underage
consumption of alcohol
after a verbal fight was

and Amy Marrotte, 18,
were cited for underage
consumption of alcohol
after a hang-up call came
into the station from
Building E. Officers
responded to the call
and observed the alcohol
violation.
April 10 – Zachary Ejzak,
20, was cited for disorderly
c on du c t a n d B ro o k e
Goodman, 18, was cited
for underage consumption
of alcohol after student
s ecurity in Eis enb erg
observed them tripping
over trashcans.

April 10 – An intruder
alarm was activated in the
University Union. The
door was found wrenched
open. Emergency contact
was made and everything
appeared fine.
April 11 – Report of
property damage to a
light fixture on Campus
Drive. The cause and time
frame of the damage are
unknown. The case is
under investigation.

Compiled by Courtney Nickle

Campus required to have three art galleries
Continued from Page a-1

Schools Art and Design),
which requires the campus
to have three art galleries:
a professional, a studentrun and a gallery to exhibit
the school’s permanent
collection.
According to MacMillan,
many ot her PASSHE
(Pennsylvania State System
of Higher Education) schools
have three art galleries.
Calvert said right now,
the art department could
only show its permanent
collection for one or two
weeks.
“We have tons of artwork
in storage,” he said. “It’d be

great to be able to show it.”
Lauren Whitehead, a
junior art education major,
said a student-run gallery
would give the students
more experience.
“There’s a lot of things
you don’t learn until you’re
a senior,” she said. “So if you
had the opportunity to put
on a show before your senior
show, it’d make things so
much better.”
Calvert said they have
been working on petitions
to get a student-run gallery,
but that was sidetracked
because of the question of
whether funding for the
gallery would continue.
Even though he’ll have

graduated by the time
another galler y would
be built, Calvert thinks a
second gallery would be
beneficial for the future.
“I won’t even see one even
if we get one, but it’s for the
benefit of the university and
the art program,” he said.
According to Calvert, all
students benefit from the
current gallery, not just art
majors and minors.
“Anyone can submit
something to the studentjuried shows and have it
displayed in the gallery,” he
said.
Whitehead said first place
at the last student-juried
exhibit was a non-art major.

All of the gallery shows
are also open to anyone,
including the community,
and no admission is charged.
“This is one of the only
spaces in the area that people
can go in an intimate setting
and interact with the work
and the artists,” MacMillan
said.
Persi said she thinks
it would be wrong not to
have a gallery available on
campus.
“Not all students have
transportation to get out
of Slippery Rock so there
should be a place for you
to go to experience art,” she
said. “It’s silly to think that it
wouldn’t be offered.”

About Us
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of Slippery Rock University every Friday
during the academic semester with the
exception of holidays, exam periods and
vacations. Total weekly circulation is 3,000.
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Editorial Policy

The Rocket strives to present a diverse range
of opinions that are both fair and accurate
in its editorials and columns appearing
on the Opinion pages. “Our View” is the
opinion of the Fall 2010 Editorial Board
and is written by Rocket editorial board
members. It reflects the majority opinion of
The Rocket Editorial Board.
“Our View” does not necessarily reflect
the views of Slippery Rock University, its
employees or its student body. Columns
and cartoons are drafted by various
individuals and only reflect the opinions of
the columnists.

GRAPHYC BY JASON ELLWANGER

Committee must look for president with Smith-like qualities
Words travel fast through
the grapevine and even faster
through campus. University
President Robert Smith will
be retiring in January of
2012. This announcement
comes as a shock to us, who
have followed under his
leadership since we started
at SRU.
Smith has endured a lot
with this university. And we
will be sad to see him go.
We respect his desire to
remain at the university
through tough times,
especially in light of Gov. Tom
Corbett’s proposed budget.
Smith stuck with us through
the Middle States Evaluations
and will stay through contract
negotiations this summer.
He’s served the university

as president since 2004,
long before most of us even
considered attending SRU.
Smith will be dealing
with some major issues
before handing off his job to
someone else. Which brings
us to the big question: Who
will lead the university in the
years to come?
A committee will be
appointed by the end of this
semester in order to start the
national search for a new
president.
We would like to offer some
criteria that the committee
should keep in mind in order
to pick a Smith-like candidate
from the haystack of choices.
The new president must
like snow, but not be afraid
to cancel school due to

“It’s a great time to be at
Slippery Rock University”
is a trademark. There isn’t
an orientation, university
address or faculty meeting
that doesn’t include those
words. We’ve used them to
get through the best and the
worst of times.
The new president must
have a calculator. Though
Smith will see the university
through the finalized
Pennsylvania budget, there
will certainly be deficits
to endure. Do they make
calculators with more than
nine number places? We’re
pretty sure the new president
is going to need one.
The new president must
be honest with students,
faculty and staff at the

university, even with the
most unpleasant news. We
appreciate Smith’s lack of
sugarcoating in times of trial.
We haven’t been led astray in
terms of how devastating the
budget cuts will be.
We think it would also
help if the person filling
Smith’s position had a sense
of humor, but that’s not
necessary. We just like to
laugh in spite of the dark
times ahead.
Come January, our
university will be in the
hands of someone else. We
just hope that the committee
picks someone qualified
enough to fill the shoes of
President Smith.
We know he’s left a big
footprint behind.

Letters to the editor
The views expressed in the “Letters to the Editor” section are those of the writer(s) alone.
The Rocket cannot verify all facts presented in a given letter, but if we are aware of an error or omission, we reserve the right to include an editorial note for
accuracy’s sake.

Who will
hand
me my
diploma?
Dear Editor,
The buzz around campus

at 2 p.m. Tuesday was the
retirement of our own
President Robert Smith.
President Smith is known
by most students around
campus, which is why the
news to most was shocking
and, for me personally, sad.
I ‘m one of the students
who’s been blessed and
honored to have worked

with Smith on several
occasions. This past
homecoming I was even
given the opportunity to
drive him in the annual
parade.
President Smith is
known for driving his
segway around campus
and making you smile.
He’s not the president that

no one sees or knows. He’s
one that gets to know you
and your name. I’m sad
that he will be retiring
because he has put so
much love and support
into this university that
many students don’t even
realize he has done.
Thank you for everything
you have done, President

Smith. You’ve forever
changed how we see
Slippery Rock University
and what it means to have
been a student there.
Marcie E. Johnson
Junior, Communication
Major, Spanish Minor
President, University
Program Board

Online Voices

Last issue's poll...
Have you donated money
to help Japan recover?

Burning Question
What quality would you like to
see in SRU’s new president?
Has a sense of humor
Cancels classes due to snow

Letters Policy

The Rocket welcomes letters to the editor
and guest columns, but does not guarantee
their publication.
The Rocket retains the right to edit or
reject any material submitted. Submitted
material becomes the property of The
Rocket and cannot be returned. Anonymous
submissions will not be published.
Those who submit letters must identify
themselves by name, year in school, major
and/or group affiliation, if any. Please
limit letters to a maximum of 400 words.
Submit all material by noon Wednesday
to: The Rocket, 220 ECB, Slippery Rock
University, Slippery Rock, Pa. 16057. Or
send it via e-mail to: rocket.letters@sru.edu.

inclement weather. Students
and faculty alike spend many
winter days trekking through
snowdrifts and ice fields in
order to make it to class on
time. We think now might be
the time to change that.
The new president must
have a signature mode of
transportation, but one
that is not a segway or golf
cart. Smith is known for
his alternative means of
travel and we would like to
see that replicated in a new
president. Having a way of
getting around campus, we
think, ensures the student
body will be aware of who
the president is rather than
just a name.
The new president must
have a catch phrase. Smith’s

Gets around campus
on a hover craft
Has a catch phrase
11 respondents

Go to www.theonlinerocket.com to cast your vote!

Opinion

April 15, 2011

A-5

Is SRU’s president retiring for the right reasons or just in time?

Spencer Cadden
The Silent Majority
President Smith is retiring
after next semester. Being
my egotistical self, I initially
assumed it was because of
my article concerning the
building of the new union.
Realistically though, that
is probably not the case.
No, Robert Smith is
retiring for personal reasons.
I want to be one of the first
to congratulate the man on a
job well done.

I never met President
Smith and frankly, I don’t
really know what he did. I
heard something about him
“fighting” the budget. But
since they pay his salary,
I’m still unclear just how he
did that. Maybe he really
was a selfless advocate for
the students. I very honestly
don’t know what he did. All
the students ever got to hear
was public relations garbage,
but that is another issue.
Regardless, the PR e-mail
sent to all the students
sure did make it sound
like President Smith, was a
visionary leader. So I thank
you, President Smith for
your service and I hope that
all of the good things I heard
you were responsible for
thrusting Slippery Rock into
the pole position amongst
the rest of the Pennsylvania

State System of Higher
Education schools. I do have
some unanswered questions
though.
Just this week, members
of APSCUF (the union
fighting Gov. Tom Corbett)
received an e-mail from the
governor’s office telling them
to be ready for retrenching.
Just so we are all on the same
page, retrenching means
to curtail, cut, delete and
economize expenses.
Basically the e-mail told
the faculty and students
that Corbett did in fact not
hear their voice and that
he suggests we all start
preparing for the worst. It
seems that Corbett is ready
for this budget battle to get
ugly, and so is APSCUF.
A quick rundown on the
budget concerns if you are
somehow unaware at this

point. Corbett’s proposed
budget for Pennsylvania will
surely save the state a vast
amount of money.
So Corbett has made it
clear that he is ready for a
fight and everyone knows
that Pennsylvania unions
are some of the strongest in
the country. My prediction:
a media bloodbath and
the students suffering
needlessly. As students, what
are we going to do?
First, I suggest writing
Corbett yourself. It’s really
easy (APSCUF made these
cute little postcards— just
ask around for them).
Frankly, I don’t care if
you support Corbett or
support our education but
regardless, you should show
your support.
Just
recently
in
Philadelphia, two men

showed up at a union rally 2014, he has chosen to leave.
shouting anti-union slogans Coincidentally, this fight
and carrying anti-union looks like it is just about to
signs. Heck, it’s that kind heat up.
The last time I remember
of democratic participation
that our country has been a president taking an early
retirement was Nixon. What
lacking.
Of course, that whole I’m saying is that I just
idea of actual physical wonder if the coming budget
democratic participation is crisis and union battle/
more like a pipe dream than strikes, etc., had anything
a reality. In the here-and- at all to do with his leaving
now students, faculty and early?
It’s something to think
Pennsylvania universities
are going to be hit hard and about. But right now I
I suggest we fight Corbett at thank you for your service
every turn, unless of course President Smith, and wish
you really don’t care about you the best in Tennessee. As
our education and are just for the rest of us, I suggest we
gear up for a battle because
waiting to be done.
My real question in all our futures are at stake.
this goes out to President
Smith. Despite his contract
Spencer Cadden is a junior
extension from the Board secondary education major
of Trustees that would have and regular contributor for The
extended his term until Rocket.

Grad speakers shouldn’t make profit
McClatchy-Tribune News Service

There are few occasions in
life more idyllic than college
graduation. Steeped in
ceremony, it is the moment of
triumph after years of work,
a time for parents to beam
proudly and gowned students
to receive their hard-earned
diplomas.
However, graduates aren’t the
only ones earning something
on commencement day. Some
colleges and universities are
paying exorbitant fees - not
just expenses - for graduation
speakers. Public speaking has
been big business for years,
and finding a great speaker
for commencement day
is a competitive business,
particularly for a school
burnishing its image and
trying to boost fundraising.
Rutgers University, which is
planning a bigger ceremony
this year, recently announced
that it will pay Nobel Prizewinning author Toni
Morrison $30,000 to be the
commencement speaker. “An
honorarium was required
to attract a stellar speaker of
Ms. Morrison’s caliber,” said
Rutgers spokesman Ken
Branson.

Morrison is only one to the Top Commencement
example. In 2006, CBS news Challenge. Michelle Obama
star Katie Couric got $115,000 will speak at Spelman College,
to speak at the University the University of Northern
of Oklahoma’s ceremony - Iowa and the high school that
although she did donate it to a serves children of members
cancer center at the University of the military on the Marine
of Virginia in honor of her late Corps base in Quantico, Va.
We know it’s a struggle
sister. And Rudy Giuliani’s
2005 address at High Point for lesser-known schools to
University in North Carolina find a speaker a cut above a
reportedly cost the school dreary dean talking in cliches
$75,000 in a contribution to a about the challenges to come.
But it’s disappointing to see
foundation of his choice.
Some speakers who a tradition so wrapped in
command astronomical idealism become yet another
fees will discount them for vehicle for commercialism.
A commencement address
commencement speeches _ it’s
possible that Morrison usually is not a gig at a corporate
gets much more than $30,000- retreat. Even though it takes
time and effort to craft a good
or waive them.
Bill Clinton, who was speech, it is honor enough
scheduled to speak at UCLA in to be chosen to impart some
2008 before canceling because words of inspiration to newly
of the university’s dispute with minted graduates. We’d like
a union, did not request a to see influential figures go
fee. Nor would UCLA have out of their way to speak at
offered one. (It never pays.) smaller institutions for free.
Neither President Obama nor Commencement day is one
the first lady are paid for their time when accomplished
commencement addresses. people should share the wealth
This year, the president will - not increase their own.
deliver the address at Miami
Dade College’s North Campus,
the U.S. Coast Guard Academy
The preceeding editorial
and the public high school that appeared in the Los Angeles
wins the White House’s Race Times on Monday, April 11.

Prostitution puts women in danger
By Daniel Akst
Newsday
MCT Campus

R e m e mb e r C h an d r a
Levy? How about Natalee
Holloway? Nothing is
more effective at triggering
a media frenzy than the
d i s app e ar an c e of an
attractive young white
w om a n . T h at’s w h at
happened when Levy,
a Washington intern,
vanished in 2001 and
Holloway disappeared in
Aruba four years later.
Sadly, things are different
when the woman has
accepted money for sex.
Police have so far found the
bodies of four young white
women, all prostitutes,
in scrubby dunes on the
beaches of New York’s Long
Island (five and possibly
six more sets of remains
are unidentified). The
women had been missing
for months or even years.
None will ever be as famous
as Levy or Holloway, who
weren’t prostitutes.
It’s hard to see what
change in law might save
someone from being in the
wrong place at the wrong
time. But some of the
Gilgo Beach deaths might
well have been averted
if we could just get over
the idea that laws against
prostitution make the
world a better place for
women.
Prostitution is distasteful
to many people, of course,
but that is no justification
for laws against it, since on
that basis Brussels sprouts
and loud neckties might also
be banned. The difference
is that prostitution is

supposedly harmful, and
so the government bars
people from trading sex for
money.
Yet the worst thing about
prostitution is the risk of
violence and abuse to which
prostitutes are subjected
by the very laws that drive
the trade underground. In
our eagerness to legislate
virtue, we are endangering
the lives of women.
I suspect our laws in this
arena have more to do with
the desire to regulate sex
than to protect anyone from
violence. In many places,
once upon a time, it was
illegal to have sex with a
member of a different race
or a person of the same
sex. These laws are seen
as absurd and intrusive
nowadays, and where they
linger, they mostly go
unenforced.
It’s time to extend this
perspective to prostitution,
which is not going away
anytime soon no matter
how many laws we adopt
or how draconian the
punishment. It is simply
nobody else’s business if
consenting adults decide
to have sex, whatever their
motivation.
It’s b e en s aid t hat
pro st itut i on d e g r a d e s
women. But it’s even more
degrading to suggest women
need society to make such
choices for them_or to
force prostitution into the
shadows, where women
are excluded from the
protection of the law and
subject to exploitation.
Many people take the
illegality of prostitution
for granted, but the United
States (aside from Nevada)

is one of the few Western
nations that make it a
crime. And selling sex for
money is safer in a regulated
setting, as reported by
women in legal brothels _
in Nevada, the Netherlands
and Australia _ that have
screening, surveillance and
alarm systems.
“Sex workers can be
victimized anywhere,” says
Ronald Weitzer, a George
Washington University
sociologist who has studied
the subject, “but in general
they are less vulnerable
where their work has been
decriminalized and where
they no longer operate in a
clandestine manner.”
In studying a legal
brothel in Mexico, the
anthropologist Patty Kelly,
also of GWU, found that
the women had rationally
chosen an occupation
offering pay and working
conditions superior to the
alternatives. The women
also made their own hours,
set their own prices, and
decided what they would do
and with whom. Sexually
transmitted disease and
violence were less prevalent
than on the streets, and
there were virtually no
pimps.
It’s too late for the women
found in the dunes. But their
deaths can inspire us to save
others by decriminalizing
what they did for money,
no matter how much we
may disapprove of it.
Daniel Akst, a columnist
for Newsday, is the author of
“We Have Met the Enemy: SelfControl in an Age of Excess”
from Penguin Press.

SPORTS
April 15, 2011

The Rocket

B-1

SRU sweeps Gannon with strong all-around play

JASON ELLWANGER/THE ROCKET

SRU won its 19th game of the season in a sweep over Gannon University. The win for the Rock gave it the top spot in the Pennsylvania State
Athletic Conference Western Division.

By Debbie Hilton
Rocket Contributor

As a result of Slippery Rock
baseball’s doubleheader
sweep, 19-1 and 5-2, of
division rival Gannon
University and because

of Indiana University of
Pennsylvania’s victory over
Mercyhurst, the Green
and White is on top of the
PSAC-West division with
an overall record of (19-11,
8-4).
S enior right f ielder

and designated hitter
Mitchell Monas credits
the dominating pitchers to
SRU’s rise to the top of the
division.
“Now that we are about
half way through the
season, everyone is starting
come together as a team and

do their part to get the job
done,” Monas said. “It is no
doubt that the pitching staff
led by the four starters who
have earned the name the
Four Horsemen for their
dominating performances
(junior Zach Jeney, senior
George Hebert, sophomore

Joby L apkow i c z an d
freshman Lou Trivino)
have been the driving force
to get us to first place in the
PSAC West.”
Senior shortstop Adam
Jury went 4-6 on the day,
including a first-game
double, collected seven
RBI’s and scored three
runs.
The Rock collected 24
hits in both games, which
included junior right
fielder Derek Carr’s three
hits and junior second
baseman Lee Foxton’s three
hits and three RBI’s.
Lapkowicz earned
the victory in game one
improving his season
record to 4-2 and only
a l lowe d four G olden
Knights hits.
Freshman right-hander
John Kovalik shutdown all
three batters he faced in
the top of the seventh to
seal the Green and White
victory.
Herbert made a solid five
and one-third-inning start
in the second game. He
allowed two runs on five
hits, struck out four and did
not allow a walk. Freshman
closer Ryan Oglesby earned
the save.
The Rock scored five runs
in the bottom of the first
inning in game two to give
it a comfortable 5-0 lead. It
added eight more runs in
the fourth to stretch to a
13-0 advantage and would
add on five more runs to
make it 18-0. The Rock’s

final run of the game came
in the bottom of the sixth.
Jury’s sacrifice fly in the
bottom of the third inning
scored SRU’s first run in the
second game. In the fifth
inning, Foxton and Howard
each had RBI’s to give the
team a 3-0 lead. The Rock
scored its final run from
a leadoff walk to junior
designated hitter Matt
Kosik, a single by senior left
fielder Haponski, a walk to
Carr and a ground out by
Foxton. The Rock came out
victorious with a 5-2 win.
SRU split a doubleheader
a g a i n s t Pe n n s y l v a n i a
State Athletic Conference
Western Division rival
Gannon.
In the opening game of
the day, Jeney had one of his
best pitching performances
on the season, pitching a
two-hit complete game
shutout and striking out 13
Gannon batters to improve
his season record to 4-1.
Back-to-back singles by
junior left fielder Carter
Haponski and junior second
baseman Lee Foxton and a
run scoring ground out by
senior center fielder Matt
Howard in the top of the
third inning put the Rock
up 1-0. Sophomore third
baseman Jamison Walck
scored on a throwing
error in the fourth inning
to add a second run. The
third and final run of the
game resulted on another
SEE BASEBALL PAGE B-4

Softball loses four of last six match ups

NATHANAEL HOOKS/THE ROCKET

Freshman goalkeeper Kat Elkins stops a ball from getting past
her against Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania on March 29.

Lacrosse gets eighth
win, most since 2007
By Tim Durr

Rocket Assisrant Sports Editor

An up and down week
for Slippery Rock women’s
lacrosse gave it the most
wins since reinstatement
in 2007, a 150 goal scorer,
and a tough overtime loss
to Indiana University of
Pennsylvania.
An 11-10 overtime loss
Tuesday to IUP is the most
recent of those to occur.
The Rock was down 5-1 at
halftime to the Crimson
Hawks and came back to

tie the game with eight
seconds to play.
Junior midfielder Casey
Quinn scored the tying
goal for SRU and sent the
game to overtime. Both
teams traded chances in the
overtime period and after
the Rock turned the ball
over in the final two minutes
of play, Indiana drove down
and scored a wrap around
goal for the game winner
with 19 seconds remaining.
SEE ROCK, PAGE B-4

JASON ELLWANGER/THE ROCKET

Senior pitcher Shauna Walker is 6-5 on the season with a 2.62 ERA in 14 appearnaces. She is second on the
team with 43 strikeouts.

By La'var Howell
Rocket Contributorr

In a stretch of three
doubleheaders against
Gannon University, Edinboro
University of Pennsylvania
and Mercyhurst College, the
Slippery Rock softball team
only managed to squeak away
with two wins.

The first game against
Gannon ended with a score of
4-1 in favor of the Knights and
the second game ended with a
score of 6-2 for the Rock.
In the first game, the Green
and White finished out with
only four hits. Sophomore
third baseman Jenna Geibel
was the only one to calculate a
point for the Green and White.
In the beginning of the

second game, junior middle
infielder Kirsten Brant and
freshman first baseman
Breanna Tongel put the Rock
on the board first with their
homeruns in each of the first
two innings.
With the bases loaded
and junior outfielder Natalie
Atkinson up, she was able to
hit a sacrifice fly that drove in
Brant

Senior pitcher Shauna
Walker would then close the
game by striking out a Knight
in the seventh inning.
Slippery Rock’s game against
Edinboro resulted in a double
loss for the Green and White.
Walker, who got the start,
continued to prevent a score
until Edinboro’s Jessica
VanDamia hit a homerun.
After having a phenomenal
performance on the mound,
Walker was then relieved by
junior Shaylee Ianno. Ianno
pick up right where Walker left
off and held the Fighting Scotts
to one run.
The backbreaker came when
the Fighting Scott got back on
offensive in the seventh inning
and scored three runs.
Game two verses the Fighting
Scotts was a defensive game,
which went into the ninth
inning. During this game,
Senior Lindsey Grace (1-1)
pitched the entire game for
The Green and White. Grace
took the loss for the team by
surrendering three runs and
ten hits while only striking out
two batters.
The Green and White put
points on the board as senior
shortstop Jordan Zeunges hit
her second home run of the
season making the score 1-0.
Junior Stephanie Collenette
would be called in to pinch
hit allowing her a run scoring
single to right field that tie the
game at 2-2 in the top of the
sixth inning.
Edinboro’s senior third
baseman Stephanie Cassidy
would take the win home for
SEE CONFERENCE, PAGE B-4

Sports

B-2

April 15, 2011

Top of the

Second
NHL Playoff Predictions
EASTERN CONFERENCE

1. Washington Capitals vs 8. New York Rangers - The Rangers took
Washington to overtime in the first game but couldn't pull it off in the end.
Capitals in 5 games.
2. Philadelphia Flyers vs 7. Buffalo Sabres - Philly was the top seed for
most of the season, and shouldn't have too much trouble with the Sabres. Flyers
in 6 games.
3. Boston Bruins vs 6. Montreal Canadiens - It doesn't look like the
Canadiens are going to have another Cinderella run this year because Tim
Thomas and the Bruins are ready to make a World Series run. Bruins in 7
games.
4. Pittsburgh Penguins vs 5. Tampa Bay Lightning - The Penguins
were in a close contest for the first half of game one against Tampa before
pulling away. Pens shouldn't have too much trouble handling the Lightning.
Penguins in 6 games.
WESTERN CONFERENCE

1. Vancouver Canucks vs 8. Chicago Blackhawks - The Blackhawks are
the defending champs but barely snuck in the playoffs this season. The Canucks
have been the best team all season. Canucks in 6 games.
2. San Jose Sharks vs 7. Los Angeles Kings - San Jose has been solid
the past few seasons but haven't put together a Stanley Cup Finals appearance,
we're not sure if this is the year but they'll beat the Kings. Sharks in 5 games.

3. Detroit Red Wings vs 6. Phoenix Coyotes - Detroit is the most
seasoned team in the playoffs and should have no trouble with the Coyotes.
Red Wings in 4 games.
4. Anaheim Ducks vs 5. Nashville Predators - Nashville has played
solid down the stretch in the season and handled the Ducks in the first game of
the series. Predators in 5 games.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MCT CAMPUS

Lebron James fights through two Atlanta Hawk defenders on April 8. The Heat have had the
most hype about being successful this season and now get to prove it in the NBA playoffs.

Will the Miami Heat win the NBA
Championship?

Tim Durr

Assistant Sports Editor

Yes
It's been a season of ups and downs for the
Miami Heat but it has shown how much
improvement has occurred over the past few
weeks and have all the pieces falling in place
to win an NBA championship. This team has
playoff tested players on it. Dwyane Wade
already has a ring, and Lebron has been to the
finals. Many people argue that Lebron caves
under pressure, but this year all of the pressure
isn't on him. With the supporting cast that he
has, the pressure is more spread out and that
will help this play through high pressure
situations. The Heat have the most talent, and
can only hold themselves back from winning.

Bill Kostkas
Sports Editor

No
No way. This is the same Miami Heat team
that couldn't hit a shot to save its life as the
clock expired. Not only that, it has the one
player that is notorious for shooting bricks
on game-winning shot attempts in Lebron
James. This is the same team that cried in
the locker room after a loss. The Heat doesn't
have anybody else beside Dwyane Wade
that's been as successful in the playoffs.
Chris Bosh has never been to an NBA
Finals and James chokes it away whenever
he gets close to winning it. If James can't
take being booed in Cleveland, he can't
deal with the pressure of winning a title.

What's On Tap.....

A quick look at the week-to-be in sports
-Fri., April 15, 7 p.m.

-Sat. April 16, 3:30 p.m.

-The Penguins, without Sidney Crosby, defeated Tampa

-Lebron James and Co. are now in the playoffs and

-NHL Playoffs: Tampa Bay Lightning vs Pittsburgh Penguins

Bay in the first game of the series and look to take a two
game lead tonight in Pittsuburgh before taking the series
down to Tampa.

-NBA Playoffs: Philadelphia 76ers vs Miami Heat

its time to prove that they are the team we hoped they
would be all season. The road to the Finals start with
the 76ers.

Sports

April 15, 2011

B-3

Halls' 150 goals sets record for most in history

NATHANAEL HOOKS/THE ROCKET

Junior attacker Amy Halls faces off against a Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania player on March 29.
Halls became the first player in SRU women's lacrosse history to score 150 goals in her career.

Slippery Rock University
women's lacrosse standout
Amy Halls became the
first player in SRU history
to reach the 150-goal
milestone.
She finished the game

against Kutztown with 153
total goals in her career
and added one goal against
Indiana University of
Pennsylvania to bring her
total to 154.
Halls' lacrosse career

started when she was
in fifth grade back in
her home state of New
Jersey when her g ym
teacher and other girls
in her elementary school
encouraged her to tr y
lacrosse.
She said she didn't
realize the great potential
that she had until she got
into seventh grade and
that's when her true love
for the sport was born.
Halls lettered all four
years of high school in
lacrosse and field hockey.
She also lettered two years
as a varsity cheerleader.
During her freshman
year of high school, her
lacrosse team was the 2005
Ohio Division II High
School State Champions.
She also received
Honorable Mention AllAmerican honors in her
junior and senior years of
high school.
She has shown that her
excellence in high school
has carried over to the
college level.
In her freshman year,
she earned first-team AllPSAC West honors and
was a finalist for PSAC
Freshman of the Year.
In that season, she set
the single-season scoring
record with 57 goals and
nine assists for 66 points.
Halls ranked in the
top-ten in the PSAC in
goals and goals per game,
and she was also a PSAC
Scholar Athlete.
During her sophomore
year, she led the team with
51 goals and 11 assists for
62 points. The SRU team
named her Most Valuable

Offensive Player for 2010
and she was named to
second team All-PSAC
West, too.
Halls was chosen as the
2011 PSAC Player of the
Week and one of seven
Division II players in the
nation to be recognized
by Synapse Sports and
womanslacrosse.com for
her outstanding play.
Halls credits her parents
and her sisters as being her
biggest inspirations and
motivators as an athlete.
"Athletics has always
been a huge part of my
family," she said. "It gives
me the drive to perform
and do well. My family
has always pushed me to
be the best I can be and
I have to thank them for
helping me reach all of my
accomplishments."
Like any great player and
leader, Halls has personal
goals that she wants to
reach herself, but also
goals that she will strive to
reach with her team.
"My main goals for the
remainder of the year
are to make it to PSAC
tournament and have a
winning record as a team,"
she said. "In my senior year
I plan to play my heart
out, take the team to PSAC
tournament and just show
an overall improvement
from my junior year."
Freshman midfielder
Lauren Laubach appreciates
Halls' leadership qualities
and recognizes her passion
for the sport.
"Amy is a very skilled
lacrosse player that has
a lot of passion for the
game," Laubach said. "She

has a lot of knowledge
about the game and is
helpful with constructive
criticism. Her intensity on
the field spreads to other
players and motivates the
team. Amy sets the bar
high and is always striving
to improve herself and her
teammates."
Halls credits her coaches
for being supportive of her
through the season and is
glad that she has been able
to be with one coach in
the same system since she
came to Slippery Rock.
"We are a newer program
and it's great that Coach
Hopkins has been around
for all three years I've been
here," she said. "I think it
really helps that we have
had consistency with our
coach."
This is also a banner
season for the rest of the
women's lacrosse team as
well.
With an overall record
of 8-5, and a 3-5 record
in Pennsylvania State
Athletic Conference play.
The team's eighth victory
set a new school record for
the most wins in a season
since the program was
reinstated in 2007.
The eight wins so far this
season marks the second
most wins in SRU history,
only behind the 11-5-1
team of 1983.
Halls is a 21-ye arold business major from
Columbus, Ohio. After
graduation, Halls would
like to move back to
Columbus and find a job
there that allows her to
have a family and do a little
traveling.

Sports

B-4

April 15, 2011

Conference record falls to 5-5

Continued from Page B-1

the Fighting Scotts. Cassidy
hit a RBI single while the
bases were loaded making
the final score 3-2.
The lost dropped Slippery
Rock’s record to 18-8
overall and 5-5 in the PSAC
(Pennsylvania State Athletic
Conference)-West and
improved Edinboro’s record
to 13-11 overall and 3-7 in
the PSAC-West.
Slippery Rock’s game
against the Lakers was a split
as well. The first win went to
the Lakers and the second to
the Rock.

Shauna Walker fell to 6-5
on the season by Mercyhurst’s
comeback for the first game.
Lindsey Grace went on the
mound to relieve Walker.
During the second game,
Ianno pitched for a seven hit
shutout to lead the Green and
White to a 4-0 win against
Mercyhurst. Ianno (12-3)
didn’t allow any runners past,
and earned her 12th win of the
season due to her performance
during the second game.
Ianno has earned highaccredited status in her
wins, innings pitched (80.2),
strikeouts (89), complete

games (six) and shutouts
(three). Ianno’s ERA is 1.30
and her opponent batting
average of .172.
The Green and White
scored two runs in two
different innings in the second
game. Kirsten Brant, Jordan
Zeunges, and senior outfielder
Shardea Croes put the points
on the board for this victory.
Zeunges scored twice making
the final score 4-0.
The Rock played yesterday
against California University
of Pennsylvania but results
weren’t available at the time of
publication.

Rock takes tough loss to Indiana
Continued from Page B-1

JASON ELLWANGER/THE ROCKET

Sophomore pitcher Joby Lapkowicz pitched a no-hitter against Clarion University of Pennsylvania April
3, and threw a one-hit shutout against Gannon University on April 9.

Baseball holds top spot in PSAC-West
Continued from Page B-1

fielding error by the Golden
Knights.
G a n n o n’s
Michael
Tom ko’s s a c r i f i c e f ly
provided the winning
run scored in the bottom
of the seventh inning of
the second game to give
Gannon the 4-3 victory.
The Rock got off to an
early 1-0 advantage, but
Gannon quickly answered
i n t h e t h i rd i n n i ng
collecting four hits off of
Trivino to take a 2-1 lead.
Haponski’s RBI single in
the top of the fifth tied the
game at two.

Gannon answered with
a run in the bottom of the
fifth to retake the lead 3-2.
In the top of the seventh,
Haponski smacked an RBI
triple to right-center field
that scored senior right
fielder Mitchell Monas
to retie the score 3-3, but
Gannon scored the game’s
winning run in the bottom
of the seventh inning and
earned the victory 4-3.
Haponski had a weekend
of hitting as he came
out with one of his best
offensive performances of
the season.
“I saw the ball really well

and I cut down on chasing
bad pitches,” Haponski
said. “I made sure I hit
my pitch.”
Senior southpaw Jason
Steen (1-3) was tagged
with the loss after he
allowed two earned runs
on four hits and struck out
three in one-third innings
of relief.
The Green and White
faces another division
rival Indiana University
of Pe n ns y lv an i a on
Friday and Saturday and
concludes the weekend
with a doubleheader at
Shippensburg University.

SRU finished the game
with statistical advantages in
most of the major categories,
including a 29-13 lead in total
shots, but the score ended in
IUP’s favor.
Quinn said while the loss
to rival IUP was a tough one
to handle, it was an exciting
game where the Crimson
Hawks were able to capitalize
on the Green and White's
mistakes.
“It’s cliché to say, but our loss
to IUP was a heartbreaker,”
Quinn said. “This was the
first game we played that
went in to overtime since
I’ve been with the team and
it doesn’t get much more
exciting than that. We played
good, but they just used our
mistakes against us and that’s
what won them the game.”
Prior to the tough loss to
IUP, the Rock watched junior
attacker Amy Halls broke the
150 goal mark and became

the first player in SRU history
to accomplish that feat.
Halls scored six goals in
the game against Kutztown
University of Pennsylvania,
which gave her 153 goals for
her career and 45 for the 2011
season.
The game against Kutztown
gave the Rock an exciting
accomplishment, as well as it
received its eighth win of the
season, which is the most in
a season since reinstatement
in 2007.
Halls said that she is glad to
hit the 150-goal mark, but it
is more important to see the
team be successful.
“It is a great accomplishment
and I am proud to have done
it,” Halls said. “Although
individual goals are great, it is
much better to see the team be
successful.
Casey and I reaching these
great miles in the past week is
a great morale booster for the
team even though we’ve had

some ups and downs.”
Halls alone outscored
Kutztown Saturday and the
final score was a 19-5 win by
the Rock. Junior midfielder
Emma VanDenburg had a
solid six-point game with two
goals and four assists.
Freshman standout Lauren
Laubach added three goals
and two assists to the Green
and White effort, and junior
attacker Alexis Slutsky had
three goals and an assist.
SRU has four remaining
games this season, all are
home games, and three of the
games are Pennsylvania State
Athletic Conference games.
The Green and White are
8-5 this season with all five
losses coming in PSAC play.
SRU plays tonight against
East Stroudsburg University
of Pennsylvania at 4 p.m. at
Thompson Stadium, and
the “Scream for Your Team”
event will take place during
the game.

FOCUS

The Rocket

April 15, 2011

C-1

Dark, serious play
takes center stage
By Andy Treese

Rocket Assistant Focus Editor

The stage of Miller
Auditorium has been
transformed into many
different settings for its
various shows from year to
year.
Having recently been
transformed into military
barracks, the auditorium’s
stage is set for the theatre
d e p a r t m e n t ’s
latest
production, “Streamers.”
Directed by theatre
professor David Skeele,
“Streamers” takes place at
a Virginian military base
in 1965 and focuses on a
group of soldiers preparing
to ship out to Vietnam to
fight. Mainly taking place
inside of a barracks, the story
focuses on the tension that
arises from the interaction
and personal conflicts of the
soldiers.
Playing the role of the
overtly aggressive Sgt.
Rooney, junior theatre
acting major Ethan Rochow,
21, said because of the
story’s nature and the way
it is brought to life on the
stage, “Streamers” is a very
dark and controversial
production.
“First off, this play really
gets down to a lot of issues, a
lot of issues that are honestly
going on in America
today,” Rochow said. “For
‘Streamers,’ it basically
focuses on the 1960’s, right
before Vietnam happens. It
really focuses on the issues of
racism, homosexuality and
really trying to find out who
you are as a person.”
Preparations for the play
took course over the span of

several months earlier in the
semester, beginning with the
designers reading through
the script of the play and
coming up with design ideas
for the stage, costumes and
lighting.
While “Streamers” has
been on the drawing board
for months, sophomore
emerging technology and
multimedia and theatre
design and technology major
Danielle DePalma, 20, said
the process of bringing the
play to life on stage didn’t
begin until March.
As the stage manager
and the assistant lighting
designer, DePalma said
the setup of the stage for
“Streamers” is similar to how
the stage was set for “The
Crucible” last fall.
“It’s very similar to how
‘The Crucible’ was set up
because for ‘Streamers,’ the
set is on the stage so the
audience is also on the stage,
so we’ve been building risers
on the stage,” DePalma said.
“It’s kind of like a black box
theater, which is where the
audience is very closed in
to where the actors are. So
it’s all kind of taking place
in one space. Everything for
this is on the stage itself.”
DePalma said the set up
for “Streamers” is unique
because of the set’s simplistic
design. The amount of
props on stage is minimal,
but detailed to replicate the
interior of a 1960s military
barracks.
She said one of the most
unique aspects of the stage’s
set up has to do with the

Turning toward the people
milling in the Boozel Dining
Hall Wednesday afternoon,
Colleen Reilly, shouted
an introduction to the
Opening Ceremony for the
Kaleidoscope Arts Festival.
“It is amazing to me how
willing and open the campus
and community is to help
with the arts festival,” Reilly,
associate professor of theatre
and festival director, said,
smiling. “Along with the ten
SEE ACTORS, PAGE C-3 committee members, campus

organizations like UPB, AVI
and different departments are
helping us as well as many,
many student and community
members.”
The goal of the festival
is to raise the profile of the
arts on campus and in the
community, Reilly said.
The festival, which has
been launching the end of the
spring semester since 2001,
wasn’t always like it is now. It
started with the department
heads of art, dance, theatre
and music who wanted
to showcase the arts on

campus for students and the
surrounding community.
“We saw a need for the
arts on campus and in the
community,” Nora Ambrosio
said, tapping her feet to the
music. “It started within each
department and then we
began to expand and bring in
nationally and internationally
known artists.”
Ambrosio, professor of
dance and dance department
chair, was a part of the creation
of the festival ten years ago
and has watched it grow since.
She said that the major ups

of the festival every year has
been watching as more and
more people attend the events.
“When we first started
the festival, it was hard to
get people to come to the
events,” Ambrosio said,
waving to someone across the
dining hall. “People weren’t
used to there being an arts
festival here. But now we
have a much more organized
public relations system and
also Colleen Reilly will be a
permanent director for the
SEE ARTS, PAGE C-3

Adjusting to college life
can be difficult no matter
where you’re coming from,
and adjusting to college
after military service comes
with its own unique set of
challenges.
Benjamin Bergfelt, 26, a
communication major and
Army veteran of Operation
Iraqi Freedom, said that
when he enrolled in SRU
he found the transition
fairly easy, but found a
challenge in adjusting
from the regimented life

of the military to the selfmotivated life of a college
student.
“I kind of went nuts with
time management,” Bergfelt
said.
Despite the challenges,
Bergfelt said that the
transition was fairly easy
and that he found SRU to be
a veteran-friendly campus.
“I actually got hugs on
Veteran’s Day and got a
shout-out from one of my
professors,” Bergfelt said.
Bergfelt said that there is
still room for improvement.
“They could have VA
representatives on campus

instead of having the
veterans drive to Butler,”
Bergfelt said.
Erie’s Mobile Vet Center
visited SRU on Tuesday.
Congress established the
Vet Center Program in 1979
to address the readjustment
issues of Vietnam-era
veterans.
“The Mobile Vet Center
is to outreach rural areas
without a VA hospital,”
Thomas Conroy of
Pittsburgh, a clinical social
worker with the MVC, said.
Any veteran who served
SEE BETTER, PAGE C-3

Tom Parker /The Rocket

The dance group, Jam Rock, performed in the Boozel Dining Hall Wednesday afternoon
for the Kaleidoscope Arts Festival. They danced to a variety of rap, pop and hip-hop
songs.

Focus

C-2

April 15, 2011

Flawless editing is a source for beautiful science-fiction film
Film pick of the week:“Source Code”

MICHAEL
CHIAPPINI
"To See or Not To See?"

5 Stars

The sidewalk between
Spotts and the PT Building
is spray painted a provocative
message: “They want us to
die in the system.” Usually I
find these types of mysterious
messages banal – they’ve
become kitsch just like the
peace sign. This one sticks
though.
All the financial anxiety felt
by the university, the anxiety
felt by students for their loans,
the anxiety felt by faculty and
staff for their jobs – all are
under the threat of dying in
the system.
What has this got to do
with moving pictures? The
recent sci-fi/war/action/
thriller, “Source Code,” seems
to me to embody this fear of
dying in the system. A film
about time travel, about the
struggle to right past wrongs,
about a refusal to accept the
rationality of the status quo,
seems to defy the current
Hollywood cinema paradigm.
Here, we have a film that does
something while it entertains.

The plot is complicated,
and possibly unintelligible at
points, so I will only give a
brief synopsis. Colter Stevens
(Jake Gyllenhaal, “Love and
Other Drugs,” “Brokeback
Mountain”) is suddenly
conscious of being on a train,
talking to a woman (Michelle
Monaghan, “Due Date,” “Mr.
and Mrs. Smith”) he doesn’t
know, inhabiting a body he
doesn’t recognize.
This train is going to crash
– a scene that will be revisited
throughout the movie. The
rest of the film revolves
around jumping through
time, reliving experiences
and trying to stop a terrorist
attack. Think “Groundhog
Day” on steroids.
“Source Code” is practically
perfect in every way. It is
the answer to the challenge I
posed two weeks ago to the
science fiction genre – can a
sci-fi film be made that doesn’t
fall into the throes of paranoia
and Panopticon-inspired
drollery – with a forceful
“Yes!” Here, the science
fiction is secondary. In fact, it
becomes irrelevant, as the film
gives little to no explanation of
how someone could go back
and forth in time and change
the course of events.
This is where sci-fi usually
fails for me – instead of
letting us become engaged
in the story, it has to explain
to a nauseating degree the
implications such and such
action in conjunction with
such and such law of physics.
“Source Code” solves this
science fiction problem by

Photo Courtesy of MCT Campus

(From left) Jake Gyllenhaal, director Duncan Jones and Michelle Monaghan on the set of "Source Code," a suspenseful time-travel film.

combining genres. This
postmodern pastiche of
melodrama, thriller, action
and sci-fi helps reinvent the
tired and overdone.
As well, it makes primary
character development and
appeal, something often
forgotten about in the genre. I
felt for Gyllenhaal’s character.
I was emotionally invested in
the film’s outcome. I haven’t
felt for a character in a popular
film for some time.
Stevens’ struggle to
overcome the odds of science
and rationality were so
poignant. As he lives through
the same disaster again and

Porn teaches boys unrealistic
standards about women and sex

Chloe Finigan
"Freshman Insider"
I’ve watched one movie
about the effects of porn
and it wasn’t very good.
It was a Lifetime movie.
This boy starts to watch
porn on the side, and then
suddenly it becomes his
life. He stops talking to his
girlfriend, his friends and
his family. Every waking
moment of his life is now
dedicated to porn.
I watched this movie
and laughed. Ever yone
was so overdramatic about
the situation. The mother
cried to the father, “Should
we take away his phone!?”
I thought why would you
take away his phone? So he
can’t watch porn on the go?
But af te r atte nd i ng
“Pornland” Wednesday
n i g h t i n t h e AT S
auditorium, I discovered
that while this movie may
be a little out of proportion,
the idea that porn can
have a major influence in
someone’s life is very true.
In real life situations,
being addicted to porn isn’t
an action movie. There are
no running sequences as
he runs home to make his
curfew after being at the
library for three hours,
watching porn is accessible
to anyone at anytime.
During the presentation,

all the graphic images
that displayed “gonzo”
or “hardcore” porn were
found when she googled
“p o r n .” A ny o n e h a s
access to these pictures
and videos, and you’d be
surprised what people
today find.
Of course, I won’t sit here
and tell you all the details.
But what is interesting is
how the themes in porn are
reflected in today’s society.
All of the extreme views
that people write off as a
small percentage turn out
to run this image-based
society.
The presentation starts
off with a woman posing
for Sports Illustrated. She
leans forward dressed in
only a bathing suit and
her face gives the camera
a look. The look says,
“Take me.” Dr. Gail Dines,
a professor of sociology
and women’s studies at
Whe el o ck C ol l e ge i n
Boston, goes on to explain
that when she asked one
of her male students to do
this, he looked ridiculous.
Why is that? Because in
today’s society men don’t
say, “take me,” they say,
“I’m going to take you.”
The p ower dynamic
between men and women
today creates a mindset
that leads to the actions.
In porn, women are objects
and they’re molded to fit
what the customers want.
While there may be a
small percentage of porn
stars who put on a happy
front, the idea of becoming
an object is hard for any
person to take, no matter
how much attention you

get or how much you get
paid for it.
Wh at I s t a r t e d t o
question as I watched was
the women who weren’t in
porn. What percentage of
the entire population of
women were actresses in
porn?
I found it hard to relate at
first because I grew up with
strong women in my life.
Everyone I’ve known has
created their own path and
refused to let the standards
bring them down. But then
Dines said something, a
point that made me realize
who this really affected
beyond the obvious fact of
women.
T he p or n e pi d e m i c
affects boys and men
in a huge way. They are
taught, through porn, the
standards for sex. They are
shown what to expect when
they turn 17. The young
boys of our generation
build up standards that
only apply to women in
porn.
These
subliminal
messages about the role of
women are told everyday
to young boys and that is
the scariest part of all.
The young boys of today
aren’t going to be running
to the library every night
or lock themselves in their
room. They are going to
expect porn to be real life.
That is why I believe this
movement is as important
as it is necessary.
Chloe Finigan is a freshman
emerging technology and
multimedia major and a
regular contributor to The
Rocket.

again, he cares for those
around him. He ultimately
exercises something else
absent from the sci-fi genre –
freewill. This alone makes the
film worth more than mere
entertainment. It rails against
paranoia, it rails against
predestination, it rails against
dying in the system. It is a
testament to freedom, choice,
and agency – things we seem
to have forgotten about.
Director Duncan Jones has
made a name for himself with
“Source Code,” his second
film, a nice follow up to 2009’s
equally entertaining “Moon.”
His cinematography and

editing choices are flawless.
The film is quite beautiful for
being action/sci-fi. The film is
carefully written, suspenseful
and well acted – all the things
normally thrown out the
window for popular cinema.
It’s astounding what can
happen when a filmmaker
puts a great deal of effort
and art into something for
the general public – not only
bizzaro art-house films have
to be well-made.
I absolutely recommend
this film, not only for its
riveting and suspenseful plot,
but for the craft that went into
making it. I also recommend

it on the basis of that message
spray painted outside of Spotts
– we don’t have to die in the
system if we don’t want to.
All it takes is recognition of
our own agency and free will
and our own ability to change
the projected events. “They”
might want us to die in the
system as much as “they”
want us to keep consuming
entertainment that keeps us
stupid.
Michael Chiappini is a senior
English literature and philosophy
major, film and media studies
minor and a regular contributor
to The Rocket.

Focus

April 15, 2011

C-3

Arts connect SRU community Better vet services needed

JASON ELLWANGER /The rocket

The Kaleidoscope Arts Festival began in 2001 and has been growing
ever since according to Nora Ambrosio, the department chair of
dance and dance professor.

Continued from Page C-1

festival so that should make a
difference.”
As a dance group left the
dining hall’s open floor to
the sound of applause, Reilly
grinned, thinking about
planning for the festival as a
first-time director.
“It’s been a very rewarding
experience, knowing there
is so much support for the

arts in this area,” Reilly said.
“Planning for this year’s
festival started the day after
last year’s festival ended and
we are already planning for
next year’s.”
She said that the festival
takes a lot of coordination
with artists’ schedules and
venues. Which event can
go where and when is a
challenge, Reilly said, but it’s
like a puzzle. According to

Reilly, the puzzle of planning
is a positive thing.
The puzzles continued
when the weather turned cold
for Wednesday’s Opening
Celebration. Reilly sighed at
the thought of the weather.
“I’m a little disappointed
with the weather,” Reilly
said, shrugging slightly. “I
think the weather should
be as supportive as the
administration is and it’s not.”
Over the years, Ambrosio
has encountered other
challenges. One such
challenge came in the form of
the budget.
“Budgetary issues are always
a concern,” Ambrosio said,
nodding her head. “We engage
in a lot of grant writing, but I
think there is a commitment
on the part of the University
to see [the festival] happen.
For the future, I hope that [the
festival] can sustain, with the
budget cuts and all, because
it is important to the campus
and community.”
With the words to
‘Heartbreaker’ almost
drowning-out Ambrosio’s
voice, she said that she hoped
students would enjoy the
festival.
“I just hope that the students
will come out to enjoy it,”
Ambrosio said.
The 11-day festival will
offer theatre, dance and
musical performances for all
members of the university
and community. Senior art
exhibitions are displayed in
the Martha Gault Gallery
every day of the festival.
“This is really a chance to
connect to the student body,”
Reilly said.

Continued from Page C-1

in combat, as well as their
family members, are eligible
for Vet Center services.
T he M VC prov i d e s
c ou ns el i ng for p o st traumatic stress disorder,
family therapy and
individual therapy.
“It’s a wonderful program
and really does provide a
necessary service for rural
communities,” Kelly Riazzi
of Erie, a MVC counselor,
said. “Today’s veterans are
a busy generation with
working, school and family.
They have so much going

on, it’s hard for them to
come to us.”
Mike Crum, 32, a senior
social work major, is a
Marine Corps veteran
who served overseas in
Iwakuni, Japan. He said that
when he arrived at SRU,
he noticed that apart from
Tiffany Aloi, the veteran’s
coordinator in the financial
aid office, there was no
representation for veterans
on SRU’s campus.
“There was a faculty
board for veterans issues,
but what they were missing
was students,” Crum said.
Crum and fellow veterans

founded SRU’s chapter
of Student Veterans of
A m e r i c a , a n at i on a l
organization dedicated
to supporting veterans
in higher education and
beyond. Crum said that
the group is receiving help
and support from faculty
members Associate Provost
for Enrollment Services Dr.
Amanda Yale and George
McDowell of retention
services.
“Now is the time that
we can advocate for better
services, not just at the
university, but at the state
level as well,” Crum said.

Actors practice military basics

Continued from Page C-1

lighting onstage.
“Because the play takes
place in the barracks, we
only have a couple beds,
but the lighting is very
realistic,” DePalma said. “We
actually have real lights on
stage, which is something
we have never done before,
like the hanging lights in
the barracks. We are actually
using real ones like those,
so they’re actually hanging
from the ceiling.”
Rochow said in the course
of preparation for the play,
the actors were all required to
use method acting for their
roles by learning the proper
ways to being a soldier. He
said the cast learned how to
do drills, march, properly
stand at attention and were
required to run through the

ROTC obstacle course.
“For a first time for all of
us, we were really lost,” he
said. “The more and more we
did the drills and the more
and more we did the certain
parts of the obstacle course,
we started to understand
and started to make a better
team effort of doing it, but
when you dive right into it
and they tell you what to do,
you’re on your own.”
Freshman secondar y
education and English major
Aaron Mild, 19, said one of
the most intense and difficult
moments of the obstacle
course also brought them
together.
“There was one moment
during the obstacle course,
where we had to balance on
this board for 30 seconds,
and when everyone got on
the board, we all froze but we

were all touching each other
so we felt as one unit,” Mild
said. “We came in there [as]
12 or 13 actors, who stick to
a script and when we’re told
to fend for ourselves, we’re
kind of lost. But we went in
there [as] 13 actors, and left
there as one person.”
With “Streamers” being
his acting debut in the
theatre department, Mild
said between the extensive
method preparation done
for the actors and the
nature of the story itself, the
production is not like any
other play he has worked
with before.
“This is one of the most
controversial plays I have
ever seen in my entire life
or have ever been a part of,”
he said.
“Streamers” opens tonight
and runs through April 21.